Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Jobless Claims Sink to 3-Year Low

It was a surprise drop, notes Bloomberg

By Kate Seamons,  Newser Staff

Posted Dec 15, 2011 9:39 AM CST

(Newser) – Unexpected visit from the in-laws: bad news. Unexpected drop in jobless claims: very good news. Though Bloomberg reports that economists anticipated that the number of Americans filing first-time jobless claims would hold steady around 390,000, it instead dropped by 19,000 last week, to 366,000. The last time it was that low? May 2008, a long-ago era when Jennifer Aniston was dating John Mayer and Newser thought "twittering" was an appropriate verb. Reuters notes that the number is approaching the 350,000 mark, one that analysts consider a sign of "more sustained improvement in the job market." Stocks rose on the news, notes Marketwatch.

A jobs sign hangs above the entrance to the US Chamber of Commerce building in Washington, DC on December 13, 2011.
A jobs sign hangs above the entrance to the US Chamber of Commerce building in Washington, DC on December 13, 2011.   (Getty Images)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
My TakeCLICK BELOW TO VOTE
10%
6%
2%
75%
2%
4%
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 31 comments
Riffran
Dec 15, 2011 9:54 PM CST
and those that just gave up and quit applying, and not working are not counted....how quaint  
John
Dec 15, 2011 3:02 PM CST
The chamber of commerce has allot of balls to hang a jobs sign outside their building when they do nothing but support the republican's job killing or do-nothing agneda.  What a bunch of hypocrites!!!
ddhartma
Dec 15, 2011 12:36 PM CST
A drop in jobless claims today is still bad news as it is just an indication that more people have been dropped from the unemployment rolls, but are still unemployed or underemployed. When these stories come out ask yourself a couple of questions (then check it out): Who's hiring, and where?
Money • US

 
unemployment • jobless claims • economy • jobless

 
NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   Timelines   |   POPSUGAR Tech   |   Business Insider   |   HuffPost Entertainment   |   NewsOne